Friday, June 29

Score one for the little guy. No nonsense bookbag as we used to say; internal padded sleeve fits a 15 inch laptop, leather tie downs up top and on bottom. 2 zip pouches on the outside. $50 by Poler. Sucker for rope logos... Big ol' Poler rope-logo-patch on there.

Sidenote; over some chile verde and catfingers at Redbones yday someone suggested "you should number your posts". Good plan... so playing catchup. This is the 1,983rd post on 10E, as indicated by the new scheme in the post titles. Will continue from here.

Backpack. Leather lash patches and a leather bottom. EVA padded back panel with laminated Air Mesh surface. Adjustable shoulder straps with Air Mesh. Interior security pocket with key fob. Pack body is made from wool, lined with 210-denier nylon. $129 at LLBean. A few other old school colors in the catalog as below but the red plaid is simply gutpunchDNA.

Monday, June 25

If the love of the food and the lifestyle were originally the
catalyst of Rohan’s passion, then a desire to live a more sustainable
existence is now providing the major impetus. Having completed a
resource management course at university and participating in
reforestation programs Rohan realised that a larger, more positive,
environmental impact could be achieved by sharing his ideology. With the
complexity and sheer scale of our environmental plight often leaving
the average individual feeling hopeless and despondent, Rohan’s simple
hands on approach provides a positive and empowering option to idleness.
Don’t get me wrong, he is a realist and understands that the majority
of the city dwelling population cannot achieve total self-sufficiency,
but he believes it is well within everyone’s ability to live more
sustainably. And why not?

Thursday, June 21

Long/short - if you want to hear Draplin talk next week, at the Somerville Public Library - head over to The Friends of the Somerville Public Library twitter feed (@Friends_SPL) and follow/RT their link. Or comment over at the Friends Facebook page. Either way you will be entered to win the last 2 tickets - front row, seam of the carpet, see the spit fly. [update 6/21 tx grabbed. Thx everyone for the interest and support.]
Going to take a flying guess that if you read 10e you know about Draplin. Field Notes / Draplin Design Co. / Highway Recovery Act logo. Think I started to catch on when he was a designer for Snowboard magazine - flexing that simple, distinct look of his.

Been out for a while but the last video Field Notes produced was about the genesis of the memo books, and a digitizing project involving Draplin's collection. There are definitely discussions to be had about the growth of big pharma and their manipulation via advertising, or Archivists and Librarians will say digitizing is not archiving - and they are probably right - but there is so much crossover here that having "Tall Tales From A Large Man" at the library makes a ton of sense.

Like many people out there (hence the instant sell-out of this talk) there is something in the simplicity of a notebook that really appeals. And as we reach a 'certain age' writing it down to remember it now... makes a lot of sense. Thx to Draplin for saying yes, and thx to The Barbarian Group for sponsoring. Again, comment or RT to enter for last 2 tickets.
James

Friday, June 15

Verging on Paula Deen territory here but just heard about this... use a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup instead of a chocolate bar. #upgrade Had s'mores the other afternoon (thx neighbor!) and was mentioning how the "idea" of s'mores is so ingrained in public awareness but when was the last time you actually had them? For us it is not uncommon.. but what about yous?

Thursday, June 14

Johnny Cash on Johnny Carson Show above. #goodstuff Somewhere I have a sticker "mom, apple pie, 10engines". Nationalists can't corner the market in this stuff... And another sticker "ride like Knievel - drink like Cash". Always loved his line "burning diesel, burning dinosaur bones". So many winners...

Wednesday, June 13

One of my favorite parts of working in restaurants was staff meal. Sometimes called family meal. It often resembled something off the menu but all the pomp was taken out.

At Wagamama we just ordered direct and as time went on staff would often order simpler and simpler dishes; vegetable ramen or cha han (egg fried rice). Loved that job...

At Nantucket's Chanticleer all chefs, including pastry chef would take a turn to prepare staff meal. The pastry chef was a guy from Sweden I think- he would make this incredible side order of carrots in a lime/beefstock/sweet/rosemary gravy.

For the Three Clock Inn (VT) staff meal was usually like nothing on the classically French menu- perhaps grilled trout caught by the maitre'd Jacques that day, or spaghetti and meatballs, or lamb curry. But always served with a potato salad created with vinaigrette and chives rather than mayo. Mmmmm

The best may have been at La Cucina on Martha's Vineyard (not there now) which was run by Marco Canora in his pre-Craft days. Big bits of fish, pasta AND garlic mash, salad. Requisite Heineken (International Beer of Kitchens).

The video above is of the staff meal at NOMA in Denmark - known for pretty esoteric, forage-inclusive dishes. Anyhow, the staff meal looks like a great intro to that world. Personally I would like to sit at the staff meal for most starred places rather than the chef'd up versions. Via Nowness.

Monday, June 11

There has been some confusion about the genesis of these cast iron modernist bookends (doorstops) that can be found in 12 colors and 2 different weights... But descendents of Curry have created a blog to clear up info about many of his designs; link.

Thursday, June 7

Mrs. 10e gave me LLBean duck shoes﻿ for Father's Day last year. Think I've worn them every second day since due to; the mild winter (thick socks) or wet spring (Happy Socks) or even gardening in the summer (no socks). Fan-flippin-tastic. Great for travelling too as you can whip them off going through security. Follow LLs advice and size down.

Wednesday, June 6

Went to the Ipswich River Audubon site last w/e for a fundraiser/dayout/get rained on... Bunch of activities; make a bird feeder by crushing seed and suet into bored out holes in a branch, or paint shells (kids), rent a canoe ($7) or bean art (kids) etc... They had a fun "race the beaver" game where you had to saw through a log in less than 3 minutes -time it would have taken the beaver to go through it with his 4 teeth. They let you keep the sawn off discs. Coasters!

Tuesday, June 5

Long/short, give yer father/husband/S.O. a can of Barbour wax and you will lose him for the majority of the afternoon. Heating, dabbing, wiping, air drying... preferably in a small hut with woodstove nearby as above (great video by LARK shop from last year). Wax is $12 at Hilton's Tent City in Boston or 100 other places.

If you have not jumped into the Barbour game, take a hot tip and get yours via ebay.co.uk. The waistcoat/liner isnt bad looking either.